Marvin Blockchain - Rust Implementation

Welcome to the Rust implementation of the Marvin Blockchain. This project is part of a comparative study on building the same blockchain in both Go and Rust. Follow along as we explore the development process, performance, and features of a blockchain built in Rust.

Project Overview

Marvin Blockchain is a distributed ledger and EVM Compatible inspired by Bitcoin and Ethereum, implemented in Rust. This project aims to provide a robust and scalable blockchain solution while comparing the nuances of building the same system in Go.

Read the series of posts about it:

Crafting a Blockchain in Go and Rust: A Comparative Journey

Crafting a Blockchain in Go and Rust: A Comparative Journey - Series

Features (WIP)

Proof of Work (PoW) Consensus Mechanism (Subject to Change)
Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Networking
Storage and Persistence
Transaction and Block Validation
Smart Contract Support via EVM Compatibility
JSON-RPC API
Comprehensive Unit Tests and Benchmarks

Getting Started

Prerequisites

Rust 1.80 or higher
Git

Installation

Clone the repository:

git clone https://github.com/joaoh82/marvin-blockchain-rust.git
cd marvin-blockchain-rust

Build the project:
```
cargo build --release
```

Running the Blockchain

To start a node on the Marvin Blockchain:

./target/release/marvin-blockchain

Running Tests

To run the unit tests:

cargo test

Project Progress (WIP)

Roadmap (Subject to Change)

Project Structure (WIP)

The project is structured as follows:

src/: Contains the source code for the blockchain implementation.
docs/: Contains the documentation and guides for the project.
src/cli/: Contains the CLI implementation for the blockchain.
src/core/: Contains the core blockchain data structures and logic.
src/network/: Contains the networking implementation.
src/transactions/: Contains transaction handling and validation.
src/wallet/: Contains the wallet implementation.
src/utils/: Contains the utility functions and helpers.
src/main.rs: Contains the entry point for the blockchain application.
tests/: Contains the unit tests for the blockchain implementation.

Contributing

Pull requests are warmly welcome!!!

For major changes, please open an issue first and let's talk about it. We are all ears!

If you'd like to contribute, please fork the repository and make changes as you'd like and shoot a Pull Request our way!

Please make sure to update tests as appropriate.

If you feel like you need it go check the GitHub documentation on creating a pull request.

Code of Conduct

Contribution to the project is organized under the terms of the Contributor Covenant, the maintainer of Marvin Blockchain, @joaoh82, promises to intervene to uphold that code of conduct.

License

This project is licensed under the MIT License. See the LICENSE file for more information.

Contact

For any inquiries or support, please open an issue on Github or contact me at Joao Henrique Machado Silva [email protected].

I am currently researching the best option to go with for the networking layer. I understand that gRPC was not initially made for P2P communication but instead for a Client/Server model, but I have seen recently a couple of project trying different implementations of it, so I am wondering if we should go with a more straight forward approach and use something like libp2p, despite the complexity. Or try something new and use gRPC. here are some of the pros and cons I compiled so far:

Libp2p Networking Stack

Advantages:

Designed for P2P: Libp2p is specifically designed for peer-to-peer networking, making it an excellent choice for decentralized applications like blockchains. It handles peer discovery, connection management, multiplexing, encryption, and more.

Modularity: Libp2p is highly modular, allowing you to customize and optimize your networking stack according to your needs. You can choose different transport protocols, discovery mechanisms, and security layers.

Decentralized Friendly: Libp2p is built with decentralization in mind, enabling you to build a truly distributed system where nodes can join or leave the network dynamically without relying on central servers.

Used by Major Projects: Libp2p is used by large, well-known decentralized projects like IPFS, Filecoin, and Ethereum 2.0. This means it has been tested in real-world, large-scale decentralized environments.

Considerations:

Complexity: Libp2p can be more complex to set up and use, especially if you are new to P2P networking or if your project does not require the full suite of features it offers.

Learning Curve: Due to its flexibility and modularity, there is a steeper learning curve associated with understanding and effectively implementing libp2p.

gRPC and Protobufs

Advantages:

Ease of Use: gRPC is easier to use and implement, particularly if you're already familiar with Remote Procedure Calls (RPC) and protocol buffers. It provides a straightforward way to define services and data structures using protobufs.

Performance: gRPC is highly performant, supporting HTTP/2 by default, which allows for efficient use of network resources, multiplexing, and lower latency.

Language Support: gRPC and protobufs are supported in many programming languages, making it easier to build cross-language services.

Interoperability: gRPC is an excellent choice if you need to interoperate with other services, especially in microservices architectures or when communicating between different systems.

Considerations:

Not P2P Specific: gRPC is not designed specifically for P2P networks. It assumes a client-server model, so additional work is required to adapt it to a decentralized or distributed architecture.

Lack of Native P2P Features: While you can implement P2P features on top of gRPC, such as peer discovery and connection management, it doesn’t come with these out-of-the-box like libp2p does.

discussion

Use libp2p or gRPC for the networking layer?

I am currently researching the best option to go with for the networking layer. I understand that gRPC was not initially made for P2P communication but instead for a Client/Server model, but I have seen recently a couple of project trying different implementations of it, so I am wondering if we should go with a more straight forward approach and use something like libp2p, despite the complexity. Or try something new and use gRPC. here are some of the pros and cons I compiled so far:

Libp2p Networking Stack

Advantages:

Designed for P2P: Libp2p is specifically designed for peer-to-peer networking, making it an excellent choice for decentralized applications like blockchains. It handles peer discovery, connection management, multiplexing, encryption, and more.

Modularity: Libp2p is highly modular, allowing you to customize and optimize your networking stack according to your needs. You can choose different transport protocols, discovery mechanisms, and security layers.

Decentralized Friendly: Libp2p is built with decentralization in mind, enabling you to build a truly distributed system where nodes can join or leave the network dynamically without relying on central servers.

Used by Major Projects: Libp2p is used by large, well-known decentralized projects like IPFS, Filecoin, and Ethereum 2.0. This means it has been tested in real-world, large-scale decentralized environments.

Considerations:

Complexity: Libp2p can be more complex to set up and use, especially if you are new to P2P networking or if your project does not require the full suite of features it offers.

Learning Curve: Due to its flexibility and modularity, there is a steeper learning curve associated with understanding and effectively implementing libp2p.

gRPC and Protobufs

Advantages:

Ease of Use: gRPC is easier to use and implement, particularly if you're already familiar with Remote Procedure Calls (RPC) and protocol buffers. It provides a straightforward way to define services and data structures using protobufs.

Performance: gRPC is highly performant, supporting HTTP/2 by default, which allows for efficient use of network resources, multiplexing, and lower latency.

Language Support: gRPC and protobufs are supported in many programming languages, making it easier to build cross-language services.

Interoperability: gRPC is an excellent choice if you need to interoperate with other services, especially in microservices architectures or when communicating between different systems.

Considerations:

Not P2P Specific: gRPC is not designed specifically for P2P networks. It assumes a client-server model, so additional work is required to adapt it to a decentralized or distributed architecture.

Lack of Native P2P Features: While you can implement P2P features on top of gRPC, such as peer discovery and connection management, it doesn’t come with these out-of-the-box like libp2p does.
discussion

opened by joaoh82 1

Marvin-Blockchain-Rust: A Rust-based blockchain implementation, part of the Marvin blockchain project.

Related tags

Overview

Marvin Blockchain - Rust Implementation

Project Overview

Read the series of posts about it:

Crafting a Blockchain in Go and Rust: A Comparative Journey

Features (WIP)

Getting Started

Prerequisites

Installation

Running the Blockchain

Running Tests

Project Progress (WIP)

Roadmap (Subject to Change)

Project Structure (WIP)

Contributing

Code of Conduct

License

Contact

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Comments

Use libp2p or gRPC for the networking layer?

Libp2p Networking Stack

Advantages:

Considerations:

gRPC and Protobufs

Advantages:

Considerations:

Owner

João Henrique Machado Silva

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